


How did I adopt my nemesis?

by Violastar3



Category: Original Work
Genre: Based on a Tumblr Post, Frustration, Hurt/Comfort, Responsibility, Supervillains, parenting, superhero, worried parent villain
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-04
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:49:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27873322
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Violastar3/pseuds/Violastar3
Summary: Based on those hero/villain prompts where the villain is fed up with how their nemesis is being treated by others. He begins to grow, what are these, feelings? No, couldn't be.
Kudos: 3





	1. Chapter 1

My monthly heist was going beautifully. Everything was according to plan. The weather was bleak, the bank patrons were terrified, and tellers were cowering behind their counters. My henchmen looked excellent in their dripping leather trench coats. Nothing was going to come between me and the largest set of gems this side of the river.

That is, until some weird blur burst through the window.

And began messing with my henchmen.

And sticking them to the ground.

“Bruce, are you ok?”

“I think so? Just stuck to the floor, no injuries.”

“Huh.”

The hero stopped in front of me to talk.

“I’m here to thtop you, villain! All your men are down. Thurrender!”

What. The heck. Is this.

“Um… are you supposed to be some kind of hero?”

“Of course!”

“Kid… how old are you?” He was only just taller than my waist.

He turned his head, defiance shining through. “I’ll never tell you! It’th part of my thecret identity!”

“I’m thinking you’re what… nine?” I casually snapped a few times, as if to work out an answer. It activated my time stopping abilities, so I could actually converse with this child in the middle of a heist.

“Twelve!” Arrogance. He’s heard that before.

“Okay… twelve. I’ll give you that. But answer me this. What are you doing at a bank heist… on a Wednesday afternoon? Like, aren’t you supposed to be in school? Or at soccer practice or something? You’re certainly not old enough to be doing this.”

“I’ll have you know that I hate thoccer. And thchool was out forever ago. Which correlateth perfectly with my need to thtop you from completing thith heitht!”

I rolled my eyes. First of all, this kid was going to get himself in trouble for missing things. Second, he was going to get himself killed. I know plenty of villains who wouldn’t hesitate to kill a child if they were in their way.

The kid took a step forward. “Enough talk! Let’th fight!”

“You stole that from Kung Fu Panda.”

“You won’t thucceed!” He jumped over my head and was about to sucker punch my face. I snapped again, and he froze.

I took a look in his eyes. The determination in those green eyes would have rivaled any upper ranking hero in this city. It was shocking to see it in a child. Especially one so young. _Those losers could learn a thing or two from this kid._

Stepping back, I took in what he was wearing for the first time. A stretchy green shirt and shorts. Some sort of crudely designed logo was 3D printed and glued to his front. Some sort of lizard? Or was it a plant? I guessed lizard, considering that my men were stuck, so some sort of adhesive?

Casually, I lifted the shrink ray from its holster by my side. With a single bolt, the kid was small enough to fit in one of the prescription bottles I kept on hand for these sorts of things. As I put him in my pocket, I hesitated.

_You know… you can’t keep him. Not like you do for other heroes. The ones you keep locked up as bargaining chips. He’s too young for crap like that._ I shook my head. No, I’d take him to the park, make him normal sized again, and walk away while the effects of the time dilation wore off. _Yes. That’s a safe plan. He shouldn’t be involved anyway._

I snapped and everything returned to its normal speed. I helped Bruce get to his feet.

“What happened boss? The kid’s gone.”

“He’ll be dealt with later.” I could feel little tiny fists tapping against the bottle in my pocket. “No questions. Now. Where were we?”

Bruce held aloft one of my ray guns. “The Vault.”

The terrified teller could only nod.

\---

Something hit the side of our van. I internally groaned. _Not again._

The pitter patter of hands and feet could be heard approaching the front of the vehicle. Here he was again. After us to “foil our plans” which were really us casually meeting up with an arms dealer for supplies.

This kid, Sticker Lizzer as he’d started calling himself, was a whole lot of trouble. And had the nerve to call me his nemesis. I had to hand it to him, his determination to use his powers for good was invigorating. But it was incredibly tiresome. The last six months had been one almost disaster after another with this kid interfering at every chance he could get. I would try plots during school hours, and he would show up. I would do the middle of the night, and he would blearily break in, dark eyed and ready to go. He practiced more martial arts. I became a better shot. He found new and interesting ways to break in to my lair. I set more elaborate traps that wouldn’t hurt him, because dang it he’s just a kid.

He banged on the window. As if he was strong enough to break it. I rolled down my window and did my now well-practiced routine. The shrink ray just sat in my lap wherever we went now. _This is so old,_ I thought as I shrunk him, snapped time, uncapped the bottle, caught the kid, and restarted time. I handed the bottle to Bruce, who was also starting to feel like this was old hat.

He held the bottle in his hand for a while. Staring at it. Doing little cutsie waves to the kid when he thought I wasn’t looking. Doing tricks with him. It was disgusting.

“I think we should keep him.”

I almost swerved. “You what?”

Bruce shrugged and looked at the kid. “He’s just cute when he’s this size. And, honestly, it’d be easier to hang on to him, rather than wasting bolts and energy doing this every time we go out to do something.”

I rubbed my head. _He has a point._ This was a lot of energy I was wasting, not to mention all the expensive traps I kept building, and the time fragments that were created every time I snapped time. I might end up on some future most wanted list for creating so many disturbances in the flow of time. _Eh, deal with the future later. Kid now_.

“This is so frustrating. The little punk… I feel like I should be signing some sort of waiver every time I fight him.” I let out a deep sigh. And let the silence stew for a minutes before launching into my essay. “Like, aren’t there heroes who monitor this kind of thing? What’s their names… oh, the Modern Musketeers. No, they're the Hero League. Yeah. Don’t they have someone who keeps track of new heroes? Trains them up, sends them on their merry way? This kid looks like he got shot with an adhesive gland steroid and calls himself a hero. All because he has this sense of justice and a 3D printer pen. Come on, kid. You’re way out of your league.”

(Later I learned he was listening the whole time, and yes, that’s exactly how he got his powers.)

“Boss…”

“Yeah?”

“… You ever think… we’re… on the-“

“NO. Stop that!” I slammed on the brakes and put the car in park. Which is a good thing, because we would have crashed otherwise. I turned on Bruce, grabbing him by the shoulders. “We are the bad guys. We are EVIL. We do AWFUL things! You don’t question my authority! Now go shoot something and get that vengeance coursing through your veins!”

Bruce left the van, leaving me alone. I sighed deeply. The kid-in-a-bottle was sitting on the passenger seat. He looked up at me with these big green eyes, wet and shiny with tears.

“Don’t give me that.” The kid cocked his head to the side. “Oh, you know what I mean.” I pulled my hands down my face. This was exhausting. “I’m going to blow something up and be back. Stay put. Or I’ll… let you out in a girl’s bathroom.”

The horrified look was enough to make me chuckle. _This kid is gonna be the death of me._

\---

I looked at the smoke plumes on the horizon. This had gone too far. Way too far. I wanted to grab the keys to the jet and get down there. But I hesitated.

_Who am I to care?_ This kid had been a thorn in my side for three years. And he thinks he can just ditch me for some villain who will take him seriously and fight him with more respect? Kid, honestly, you’ll never get the same courtesy from any other villain. Other villains? They’ll just shoot you. Or torture you. Or maim you beyond recognition. At least I let you go. I just shrink you. And snag you before you can get in the way. And get hurt.

I moved again to grab my keys. This kid was going to die. And I couldn’t let that happen.

\---

The echoes of my impassioned speech still rang in the air. “No one fights my nemesis, except me.” The smudge on the sidewalk was the last of the evidence that anyone had even challenged my claim. I quickly turned to the lump of green spandex coughing painfully behind me.

“Nemesis, huh?” He choked out. “You’re finally owning up to it?”

I assessed his wounds. “More respect in a fight, huh?” My rebuttal came with a hiss of pain from him. He tried to sit up.

“Stay down. Gotta know when you’re beaten, which I guess is something you never figured out.”

A weak chuckle. “Nope. Never will either.”

I shook my head. “Kid, you got insurance that’ll pay for these wounds?”

“Nope.”

Frowning, I pulled a tattered wallet from his pocket. “Money?” He weakly tried to grab it. The wallet was empty. Just a student ID card to the local high school and some one-dollar bills. “Family? Come on, you gotta have someone.”

He turned his head away. Under a quiet breath, he murmured, “No one. And no home either, before you ask.”

I stared, open-mouthed at him. Words wouldn’t form sentences. Everything was a mess.

“You mean to tell me… that my nemesis… is a homeless kid with no family who lives in a park? And I’ve just been-“ I choked on a sob. “You’re not serious.”

“Couldn’t be more serious. Except my wounds…” another chuckle, and I smiled briefly.

“The Hero League, they at least-“

“Paid for a suit. Nothing else. They don’t get too involved outside with secret identities and past lives.”

_Those jolly justice jokers._ “They’re all goody-goody and don’t even take care of their own heroes?”

“I never brought it up. I didn’t need to.” He trailed off with, “They never would have helped anyway.”

I slammed my hand down next to his head, and he looked up, terrified. Those big green eyes met mine, and I glared.

“Listen here, kid. You’re getting in that jet, whether you like it or not. And you’re getting a bed. And a home. Don’t give me that spiel about being a good guy, you can’t accept help from bad guys. It’s crap. Honestly, you ought to have enough hatred for those would-be heroes for doing this to you. Not saving you or helping you out. I’m gonna give them what they deserve for this, whether you’re in or not. But you’re coming with me.”

I scooped him up and carried him to the jet. _Blood in my cape. That’ll be tricky to get out. This is dry clean only._ I rolled my eyes again. This kid.

“You got a name? Besides… what did you start out as again, Sticker Lizzer?”

I got a genuine laugh from him. “Oh, gosh, you remember that?” He smiled, then crumpled up again, still in pain. I laid him down and set the controls to take us back to the lair.

“Take your time. You’ve got a lot hurting. I can tell.”

He swallowed. “Rawlins. Sam Rawlins.”

I wiped some blood off his face.

“Alright. Sam it is.”


	2. Six Months Later

This was it. This was the step that would set my entire plan into motion. Everything was in place and I was ready for them. Once I had him, the other dominoes would fall, and I’d finally be done with that horrible Hero’s League. 

My men had been monitoring the routine of each member of Team Alpha, the highest-ranking team of heroes on the coast. I had evaluated which one of them was the piece that would bring it all down. The clever one; who always had everything figured out almost before I did; the one who stays behind and provides tech support on missions; the one who can break into and out of anything that has a computer in it. That one. Technic. 

He was off duty tonight and on his way to an evening with civilian friends. I laughed. Despite the number of times the Alpha team had been on TV, none of Technics friends even knew they were friends with a superhero. How droll. Living life without taking the recognition for hard work. Pitiful.

As Technic and co. walked into the theater, my disguised crew followed. I monitored everything from the van around the back. As they chose their film and sat down, my crew followed, casually sitting in the seats all around his group. I held my breath. This was the fun part. 

The room darkened, and in a moment, the fireworks began. The wall blew out backward, bringing in swirls of dust and debris. The audience began to cough, and some started screaming. My men started shooting paralyzing darts in all directions, including at Technic and his friends. The effects would only last a few minutes; just long enough to nab Technic.

The hero jumped, staying aloft on nearby Wi-Fi signals. I’d researched his powers, and he was actually quite gifted for one so young. That was most likely part of why he worked with Team Alpha.

My men tried to shoot at him, but their shots all fell short. Technic summoned a ball of sparking energy, sapping some energy from nearby phones. He threw it, and it made the dart guns fizzle and lose their energy. 

I watched from outside the building, per usual, with feelings of curiosity and amusement budding inside. This kid was a natural. Too bad he’d be sidelined for most of the plan.

He got ready to launch another ball of energy, and that’s when I chose to snap. Everything froze, including my henchmen and Technic

Stepping over a pile of loose bricks, I sauntered over to where the super hung in midair. I pulled him down by his ankle, the energy ball following his hands. Once I’d gotten him to the floor, I pushed his hands together, causing the ball to be reabsorbed into him, hitting him with the shock he would have given my men. 

His hair stood on end, short as it was, and his eyes slowly widened then closed. He sort of crumpled to the floor in slow motion. I clicked a set of handcuffs over his wrists as he fell. I always kept a few on hand, because they were specifically designed by a neutral dealer for people with powers. Useful to heroes and villains alike. Perfect for my needs. 

With another snap, time restarted itself, and Technic fell the rest of the way to the floor. The dust cleared around me a bit. I heard a few audience members gasp. They hadn’t even seen me enter, just suddenly appear with an unconscious hero at my feet. 

“Many of you know me, some may not. I am Freeze Frame, and I claim this little hero. Inform Team Alpha that Technic will only be released to them if they bring me Purgatory’s Death Ray. They have 3 days!” I said, dramatically, then snapped and moved Technic and myself to the hole in the wall. “Or else.”

With a dramatic flourish, we were gone, in a haze of smoke and debris. 

Yes! I’ve done it! I’ve crippled the Alpha Team! I thought as we drove away. The kid in the back of the van would be the key to his team’s undoing.

\-----

My head was pounding. Something’s not right. I blearily tried to open my eyes, only to find that my surroundings were too bright to make anything out. Everything hurt too much to move. When I attempted to roll over and push myself up, something prevented them from moving. I tried to feel out with my powers for something that would tell me where I was. But I couldn’t feel anything. Power cuffs? What is this?

“Ah, I see you’re finally awake.” A cold voice spoke over me, a sneer evident in his tone. I froze. 

“Freeze Frame,” I spat. “You snake! Let me out!” 

He reached down, gripping my chin in his hand. His fingers were cold on my face; I shivered. “Sorry, but I won’t be doing that. When all goes according to plan, you’ll be walking out of here in a few short days in exchange for a certain death ray. Your team will be here shortly to collect you.”

He said it all so casually. This is hilarious. He really thinks that they’ll come for me? “Excuse me?”

He tilted his head. I’d thrown him off. Curiosity. Confusion. Both played out on his masked face. “Excuse what? What are you talking about?”

“You seem to be under the delusion that I’m going to be rescued.”

Freeze Frame dropped my face, and I landed on the floor with an oof. “Now it’s my turn. Excuse me? Delusion?” As I rolled over to see his expression, it was written all over his face. Doubt, anger. Was that a trace of concern? “You think I’m deluded to think that you’re going to be rescued?”

“Yes.”

“Well why not?” He turned around, pacing around the small room. “You’re the tech savvy teammate. You call in new plots from villains, you find all the research behind them, their schemes; you’re the one who brings the most support to Team Alpha. Your powers are unmatched in the spectrum of powers, even among villains. You’re saying, as the most valuable member, that you’re not getting rescued?”

I rolled my eyes. This guy did not dig deep enough into the Hero’s League records. “Seriously? You wanna talk valuable members of Team Alpha? Team Leader, literal face of the Hero League. Try Lighted Window, his girlfriend. She’d be the one to nab to get Alpha’s attention the fastest, if she didn’t blind and burn you in the process. Try the muscles of the team, Molten Steel. The guy’s Polynesian and built like a tank. Or our resident speedster, Pedal; she’s freaky fast.” 

A deep sigh escaped, and my shoulders slumped so I was basically talking into the floor. “I’m literally just the tech guy. Yeah, I mean, I do all that, I even occasionally go out with them. I’m just a glorified intern. I’m replaceable. I know a speedster who does the same thing for Team Beta; wouldn’t she just like to get a promotion to Team Alpha. That’d just be the icing on the cake for her resumé.” I’d sort of trailed off into something about how she always wanted to move to San Fran, just mumbling by the end of it 

Without warning, I felt hands tuck under my arms, lifting me into a sitting position. It wasn’t much more comfortable, but it was better than having my face in the ground. I looked up and caught the gaze of Freeze Frame. He seemed to be studying me intently.

“What are you looking at?”

“Trying to figure out how those bas- I mean, idiots could be so cold to one of their own.”

It was my turn to cock my head to the side. “Wait, isn’t your number two like, a defected hero?” From what Cathy in Team Beta said, the guy had been running solo for years against Freeze Frame. He was young and didn’t have a team affiliation, and eventually got his butt handed to him by a powerful supervillain. Freeze Frame had intervened, killing the other guy, and saving the adhesive powered guy. “I’d heard-“

“Lies. Rumors. You couldn’t even begin to understand the truth about it.” He stood up quickly and made to leave the room.

“Where is he?” I could tell my words were ill-timed. Something in them gnawed at his heart. He froze. 

“He- he left. Soon as he was better.”

“Oh. I’m sorry- I… didn’t mean to pry.”

“Shut up. We’re done here.”

The door slammed shut and the lights were turned off. I was alone with my thoughts, with a lot on my mind. 

\-----

Why is this kid so good with words? I stomped off, leaving the cell block behind me. My mind raced with thoughts and conflicted emotions. 

These heroes are really terrible people. Replaceable? Is that how he’s viewed? It couldn’t be possible. Were the others really so thick that they wouldn’t notice the absence of one of their teammates? They probably have difficulty operating a toaster, let alone doing half of what Technic did for them. 

My thoughts drifted from stupid heroes to the one in the cell. His warm brown eyes and honey colored hair made him seem like an intelligent and kind person. I almost couldn’t get them out of my mind. Straying thoughts wandered to thoughts of a pair of large green eyes, ones that hadn’t been seen in my lair for several months. 

Gosh, I miss him. I could feel wet tears pricking up in the corners of my eyes. 

“No!” I shouted, wiping them away. Footsteps stopped in their tracks. I looked up to see Janice from engineering. She paused and gave me a curious look. I blushed. “I didn’t mean to say that out loud. Or that loud… Ya know… onions… they’re just like that sometimes.” 

She nodded, slowly, somehow gaining an understanding of the whole situation without me saying anything. I nodded as she passed me, then felt more tears. I rushed to my office, ready to call it a night, hoping that I wouldn’t see anyone else.

Thankfully, I got inside without any other encounters. I broke. I’d been holding it in, but here was where it came out. Heavy sobs and a wave of panic flooded over me. This was too much. I couldn’t breathe.

After a few minutes, I realized someone had been knocking at the door for quite some time. I stumbled to my feet and opened it.

Janice stood just outside, holding a Gatorade and a cookie. I don’t know where she got either of them on such short notice, but I welcomed them, without a fuss.

I sat on the floor by my desk and sipped my drink and nibbled away at the snack. Janice didn’t say anything. She just sat there; waiting for me to be able to explain myself.

“He’s so much like him. So much. And- those would-be heroes are just awful. They’ve got to come for him. Shouldn’t that be in his contract or whatever? Team is obligated to rescue team members in distress? I mean, I can see it getting overused with like, bad dates or something. But seriously? He said they’re not coming.”

Janice nodded, smiling sadly. 

“And, get this. He buy’s it too. He thinks he’s replaceable. Replaceable! This kid is one of the best techno supers out there. And they make him a glorified intern? Or was it a secretary?” Hiccup. “One of the two. Anyway. Kid’s in the same boat Sam was in. Stupid heroes. Thinking people are disposable. Well… the only way to be sure of anything here is to wait it out and see what they do. I moved my knight. It’s time to see what they do.”

Janice nodded in agreement. Then her hands moved swiftly, and I noted her questioning expression. 

“Technic? Sure, that’s probably better for the long term anyway. But for now, I’d put him in the rustic room. There are shields in place, so he won’t mess with anything or get out. I… feel bad he’s been in cuffs this whole time. Oof. Good call Janice. You get a bonus.”

She beamed, clearly pleased. She signed something else, and I waved my hand, dismissively. “I’ll be fine. Just had to talk it out. Thank you very much for… all this. It’s much appreciated.” I gave the sign for thank you, and she left. 

Yeah. The kid needs to be in a more comfortable room. Especially with those no-good-doers not coming any time soon. A thought crossed my mind, and I radioed to Janice. “Make sure you uncuff him after you take him to the rustic room. I won’t have him making a mess around here because of a slip up.”

She beeped back twice, signaling that she understood.

I sighed. This had been a long night. I gathered up some crumbs and the plastic bottle and made my way over to my quarters. A small framed picture sat in my line of sight. The shot seemed all orange and yellow. But I knew better. It was probably the only picture ever to be taken inside of a medicine bottle. 

I chuckled. Bruce’s eyes and nose looked all whacky and out of proportion through the plastic. In a slight reflection cast by the flash on the bottle, you could make out the photographer. Curly, light brown hair, a green shirt and pants, and a polaroid camera covering his face. I knew there were large green eyes just behind the lens. 

A twang in my heart made me stop in the doorway. I wanted to do it again. Rip up the picture. Break the frame. Be mad, break things, destroy the city, get my revenge on this hero who broke me.

You broke him. A twisted voice whispered in my ear. It’s all your fault he’s gone.

“NO!” I screamed it this time. My grip on the doorknob tightened, and a moment later, I worried that I had broken it. There was no damage, only the echoes of my yell in the room.

I breathed deeply, and stepped in. My quarters were exquisite to be sure, with everything a respectable villain would want or need in his private quarters. Nothing really mattered to me in the moment. Trophies of past triumphs, an enormous bathroom, more useless stuff.

I finally made it to the bed, getting in without much care for what I still had on. This day needed to be over. 

\-----

The lady who got me from the cell was very nice. She didn’t say anything; just helped me to my feet, and gently guided me down a hallway. We passed almost twenty doors before the hall ended. Once outside, I glanced around, and was drawn in by a large machine. It was presumably for the destruction of the city, but who knows with villains. Some of them can be very compact when it comes to nuclear bombs. Others will take an entire room just to get the perfect latte machine. Villains. They were some of the most… unique and unpredictable people I knew.

Part of me really wanted to get loose from her grip and run. I thought I saw an exit sign on the other side of the device, and maybe I could force it open. Then I remembered the stupid cuffs on my wrists, preventing me from doing anything really. I let her continue to steer me to a semi-private hallway on the wall opposite the machine. 

We walked for about five minutes before we came to what seemed to be a small bayou, with a seemingly murky water feature, and a shack out on the water. I peered at it, curious as to why this would take up an entire wing of Freeze Frame’s lair. A few trees appeared to be naturally placed in the biome, completing the aesthetic. A wooden sign was hung on a fence railing that said, Rustic Room. Well, that’s classy. 

The lady held her badge up to the sign, and a walkway rose out of the water, folded halves rising up from vertical to horizontal. Even the walkway was crooked, like it was actually a real shack in Louisiana. I followed the lady across the bridge, and gasped when I saw movement in the water. Crocodiles. Or are they alligators? I really never bothered to learn the difference… I shivered and moved on. 

Inside the room was… quaint. A nice-looking bed sat in the corner, with a wooden chest at the end. A writing desk was on another wall, along with a wood burning stove. There were no lightbulbs. Just lanterns. And, as far as I could tell, there was no electricity at all in this building. I opened my mouth to ask why, when the lady tapped the cuffs. They fell off with a hiss, clattering to the floor.

This is… weird. “Why are you uncuffing me?”

She didn’t say anything. Just smiled a sad smile. She walked over to the desk, grabbed pen and paper, and simply wrote, “Boss’s orders.”

“But… what if I escape? Use my powers, get out of here?”

“Shielded. At least you get a cushy cell.”

“Yeah, but-“

She held up a hand, then scribbled something. “Look, you’re probably tired. Sleep. Don’t worry. Food will come shortly. Ask Q’s tomorrow.”

I rubbed my wrists and sat down on the bed. “Fine.” I was resigned to my fate. This was a definite improvement. But why?

“Hey, thank you. I… didn’t get your name.”

“Janice.”

I smiled. “I like it. I’m… well… don’t tell anyone. My name is Eli.” I blushed. I wasn’t supposed to give out my real identity but knowing she’d seen me without my mask on, there was no real harm.

It was her turn to smile. With a grin, she made the motion of zipping her lips and winked. I laughed, then remembered something. 

I put my hand to my mouth, and brought it down in front of me, palm up, then tried to sign the letters of her name.

She brought her hand forward in a large circle, like bowing without bending over, and I guessed from the context that she said, “You’re welcome.”

With a small wave, she left, closing the door behind her. I looked out a small window at the front of the shack, and watched as she crossed to the other side, and the walkway disappeared beneath the water. 

Well, here’s to waiting on terrible friends in a shack. 

\-----

Janice cleared her throat behind me. I turned to see the screen she was showing me. It was the feed we’d tapped of the Alpha Team headquarters. She unmuted the video, and I listened to their meeting.

Epic, or whatever his name was, called the group to order, and had the speedster review the missions from the previous night. There was something about a bank robbery, and a brief mention of a theater. But nothing about Technic. Once the minutes were over, Lighted Window, the ditzy looking blonde, piped up about who present threats were, and asked about how they needed to be handled. 

“This is it.” I whispered. “If they’re gonna say anything, now’s the time.”

“I think our main concern is Purgatory and destroying that death ray.” Epic said, firmly. “Secondary concerns?”

“Freeze Frame has been up to something.” Pedal said, then motioned to the empty seat next to her. “You’ve got more info on him, don’t you Technic?” Then, realizing the seat was empty, she said, “Hey, where’s Techie?”

Molten Steel spoke up and had a surprisingly gentle voice for someone so battle-hardened and buff. “He’s probably hung over. You know those civilian friends he’s always hanging out with.” He hung onto that word, civilian, like it was some sort of disease instead of a non-hero status. “Must have gotten him wasted last night.”

Pedal shook her head. “No, I know some of his friends. They’re not that type. Do you think he’s sick?”

Epic cleared his throat. “I think we have more important things to discuss besides an absence. He didn’t radio for any help, so he’s not in trouble. If there’s something we need, we can always ask Beta for a hand. Now, about that death ray…”

I muted the feed. I can’t believe it. It’s all true. Janice put a hand on my shoulder, steadying me as I swayed. I needed to sit… spinning… Janice signing something in front of me. Couldn’t…. breath…

Snapping. Someone snapping in front of my face. I blinked several times. A few gentle pats on the side of my head, and I focused in on Bruce. 

“Hey, come back. Come on back. That’s it. Focus on me.” His words were grounding, and I rubbed at my eyes. He became clearer and held up a paper cup. “Drink up. It’s just water.”

I was aware that I was sitting on the floor, and several people were gathered around us. Janice stood just behind Bruce, a nervous expression dominating her features.

“I’m ok, people. I’m ok. Just… give me some space.” The crowd started shuffling back to their various desks and computers, keeping a wary eye on me.

Bruce put an arm around me and hauled me to my feet. “Let’s go to your office.” I nodded, a wave of nausea and fatigue hitting me like a brick wall. Once we were safely inside, I collapsed on my chair, my head still spinning.

“Hey. Whatever happened out there… you’ve gotta let us know.” Bruce put a hand on my shoulder. I stiffened under his hand. 

Silence for a moment, then Bruce said, “Janice agrees. If this has anything to do with last night, then we deserve to know. If changes need to be made to the plan, awesome.” He turned my chair around, getting right in my face. “If certain bosses are breaking down again on the daily, then something’s wrong and we need to address it. Or else certain long-held goals can’t be met. You know what I’m talking about, Franklin.”

That snapped my moody silence. “What did you call me?”

“Franklin. That name you hide, the one you grew up with. The one I teased you for.”

“Well, I got back at you by pantsing you in front of Sally Dummar.”

“So, I slit your backpack when you weren’t looking.”

“Well I-“

“I know you.” I stopped. Finally listening to him. “And I know when the feels hit, you really go down. It was like this with your mom. It was like this with Sam. And…” he looked at his hands nervously. “If you’re going to break down now, when we’re so close to getting everything we need, then we need to change a few things.”

“Like what. Erase my emotions? I know a guy with a few parts…”

“No.” I heard someone rasp. Swiveling around, I stared at Janice. She tried to clear her throat again, then, after a few attempts, she closed her eyes, and signed instead. “Don’t bottle anything up. Just… talk to us. We need to know how to help you. Fortify our defenses, physical and mental, and prepare for the oncoming war.”

I stared, shocked, at Janice. I had never heard her speak once in all the time I’d had her employed here. To hear anything from her meant this was serious. Letting out a sigh, I stood up. 

I looked them both in the eye and smiled. “Alright. Fortify it is. However, you’ve both got to promise me something.”

They stepped closer, intently listening.

“No fruit punch flavored Gatorade. No cookies with raisins. Got it?”

\-----

My origami bird was coming along well. I was making things up as I went, considering that I had no instructions, but plenty of paper to occupy the time. 

I found myself pretty bored in here. It had been useless trying to reach out to any nearby tech. When Janice said this place was shielded, she’d certainly been right. There was nothing here to manipulate or listen to. I could usually pick up on radio waves, or people’s Bluetooth connections, so that’s how I listened to music. Here was… too quiet for my liking. No chatter, no happy thrum of routers providing WIFI. Just my own thoughts and the crickets outside.

The door to the shack opened, and I expected to see Janice bringing in some lunch. I glanced up, only to stare in bewilderment at Freeze Frame. He didn’t have his mask on, nor did he come empty handed. A loaf of bread and a spoon were in his hands. A furious blush reddened his cheeks.

He broke the silence first. “I… forgot Janice put you in here.”

“Is this your normal… hiding place?”

“No. This is just where I stash my Nutella, so Janice doesn’t get after me for eating too much of it.” He opened the chest and pulled on the bottom. A wooden piece came out, hanging on his finger by a knot. Next came a large jar of Nutella, and he sat down by the chest.

“So that’s what the spoon is for.”

“Yeah… Don’t tell her.”

I looked him over, as he spooned some Nutella on to a slice of bread. He seemed… agitated by something, having relaxed slightly from earlier. His eyes were dark, something weighed heavily on his mind.

“Something giving you trouble?” He shifted, uncomfortably. Quickly, I tried to fix it. “I mean, I stress eat Nutella all the time too. Just… you look exhausted as heck. Is there anything I can do?”

“They’re not coming.”

I frowned. They…

“They’re not coming to get you.” 

I remained silent. I didn’t want to- couldn’t say anything. The blank, haunted look in his eyes made me shiver. This was the face of a man who was about to lose everything. Everything had been bet on one little thing. And if that one little thing broke… everything fell in flaming pieces around it.

“I already knew that.”

“Yes, I know. And I can’t help it if I break a little knowing that fact.” He stared at some point on the floor. “But now I know that. For sure.” Turning to me, he got up from the floor, waving the spoon around like a baton. “But do you even know how messed up your team is? They’re just sitting there, willfully oblivious of your kidnapping. Making assumptions about your whereabouts. Pretending to care.”

“Stop. Please, that’s enough.” I put my hand out, wanting to stop him from saying any more.

He only got more heated. “No. If your so-called team were anything more than a bunch of jerks playing dress up, they would have already rescued you.” He kept getting closer and closer until I could almost feel the flush of his cheeks as he became more agitated. “If they cared, so many things would be different! You wouldn’t be here! We wouldn’t even be speaking right now, coming up with a plan to take them down!”

I froze. Hard. “What?”

He was suddenly quiet, even though he hadn’t moved. “They don’t deserve you. They really don’t. And if they’re going to be-“

“Don’t say anything nasty about them-“

“Like that… then they don’t deserve to be heroes, ‘rescuing’ people from danger. Not when they’re being cruel to one of their own. Real heroes don’t do that. They just don’t.”

My head was reeling. I couldn’t process this. “Not Pedal. Not Molt. They wouldn’t- can’t be cruel. That’s just not who they are. They aren’t villains. They’re my-“ the words got caught in my throat.

“Friends? Do they really know you? Do they really care about you?” I thought about it. Had I ever spent time with anyone from my team outside of work? Had I ever invited them out? I couldn’t even place an occasion where they’d asked me to hang out with them, even though I knew they did regularly. 

Freeze continued. “I know for certain that Epic and Blighted Widow-“

“Lighted Window.”

“Whatever. They don’t give a crap about you. And the Hero’s League is so corrupt, and don’t tell me they aren’t. You know it.” He paused, then looked at me with an odd expression. His eyes were lit, and an anxious smile played at his lips. Hope. “So… for your sake, and the sake of others who’ve had the same awful game played against them… will you join me in taking them down?”

I sat down. Everything spinning. There were others who also had this happen to them? Maybe they really were corrupt… But could I trust Freeze Frame? The man who literally robbed all the banks in San Fran simultaneously, the man who was responsible for the accidents that ended my parents’ lives, the man who-

The man who was concerned for his employees. Who ate Nutella when he was stressed. Who didn’t want others to be hurt by corrupt people. 

But… did all those things override the fact that he’s a villain?

I found a chocolatey spoon in my mouth a moment later. I blinked, and realized that while I’d spaced out thinking, Freeze had put a spoonful of Nutella in my mouth. I scoffed and took the spoon, licking it clean. 

“What do you say? Are you in?” He sounded shaky, like he had no idea what the outcome to this will be.

“No last-minute addendums? Conditions or exceptions?”

“None. You’re in full-time, no secrets, everything in full view.”

“Including your past?”

He flinched. Then, after a minute, he gave a small nod. “Not any time soon, though. When I’m ready, I’ll tell you.”

I could understand his hesitation, so I nodded. “Alright… I’m in.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And... unexpectedly, here's the next portion of the story! I had no idea this was coming, and it's a bit of a different flavor from the first chapter. Thanks for stopping by to read! Drop a kudos and bring some winter sunshine to my inbox :D 
> 
> Pin of Origin: https://www.pinterest.de/pin/635922409873426695/

**Author's Note:**

> This just sort of happened over the course of two hours. Started off as a tumblr post I liked, turned into a brief roleplay, annnnnddd then this short story was born.
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> Link to the OP: https://pin.it/5kjkO7D


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